Locking mechanism



- c. F. RUDOLPH LOCKING MECHANI S M Filed oct. 31, 1922 Patented Nov. 4, 1924.

UNITED STATES CORRIE F. RUDOLPH, OF WASHINGTON, DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA.

LOCKING MECHANISM.

Application filed October 31, 1922.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CORRIE F RUDOLPH, a citizen of the United States of America, and resident of Washington, District of Columbia, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Looking Mechanisms, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates generally to locking mechanisms and more particularly to rotary snap switches and the like.

The principal object of my invention is to provide a rotary switch which is positive in its operation, eliminating skipping of the contact blades beyond he designated stops.

Another object of the invention is to provide a switch in which there is no arcing due to irregular operation of the contact blades.

A further object is to provide a mechanism in which there are no delicate and weak parts, but the entire operation of which is performed by one rugged spring.

With these and other objects in view, the invention consists in the construction, combination, and arrangement of parts will be hereinafter described.

Reference is to be had. to the accompanying drawings forming part of this specification, in which like reference characters indicate corresponding parts throughout the several views, and in which Figure 1 is a side view of my invention partly in section,

Fig. 2 is a view on the line 2-2 of Figure 1,

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of one of the plates of the locking mechanism.

Fig. 4 is a similar view of another of said plates, and

Fig. 5 is a plan view of a ball holding plate.

Referring more particularly to Figure 1 of the drawings, 6 represents a stationary base composed of insulating material upon which are mounted the fixed contact mem here 7, comprising part of the electrical circuit. Upon this base in its exact center is mounted the central operating mechanism which consists of the spring 8, blades 9, blade carrier 10 and locking mechanism. The locking mechanism consists of three stationary members 11,12 and 13 which serve as a housing for the movable parts. The member 12 which is a plate, preferably of Serial No. 598,197.

metal, serves as a guide for four metallic balls 14:, 15, 16 and 17, which are free to revolve and pass through openings 18, 19, 20 and 21 respectively, and is preferably slightly thicker than one-half the diameter of the balls. The balls serve as stopping members to register the movable blades with the stationary blades and are operated by members 22 and 23. Member 22 is secured in a fixed relation integral with. the movable blades 9 by fastening elements 24-, passing therethrough, while member 23 is in fixed relation with shaft 25, the reduced end 26 of which fits in a rectangular opening 27 in said member. Member 23 is provided with four cup shaped depressions 28, 29, 30 and 31 which are adapted to register with the openings in plate 12 permitting the balls to be forced downward by bent up portions 32, 33, 34 and 35 on the member 22. These depressions and bent up portions are placed at the corners of rectangles rather than squares to prevent both pairs of balls from registering at the same time.

The helical spring 8, which is coiled about the shaft 25, has its ends '36 and 37 bent at right angles and projecting outwardly so as to engage the upright pieces 38 and 39, as more clearly seen in Fig. 2. The piece 38 is secured to the shaft 25 by a collar 1-0, while piece 39 is a right angle having one arm fixedly secured to the blade carrier 10 by one of the fastening elements 24. The ends of" the spring are so arranged that the operation of the switch may be either clockwise or counter clockwise.

In the operation of the switch, assume that the shaft 25 be given a rotating movement clockwise, which carries with it the member 23 and the end 36 of'the spring, placing the spring under tension which tends to rotate the blade carrier 10, movable blades 9 and member 22, through the spring end 37 bearing against upright 39. These parts, however, are prevented from rotation by means of the bent up portions 33 and 35 resting against balls 15 and 17 respectively until depressions 28 and 30 register with balls 15 and 17 at which time the balls will be pressed downwardly by the bent up portions 33 and 35 and the member 22 will pass over said balls under action of the spring.

Before the member 22 is released, however, member 23 will have been rotated slightly over 90 at which time depressions 29 and 31 will have passed under and beyond balls; 14-

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and 1 6 respectively, thus raising said balls into the path of the bent up portions and stopping the member 22 against further rotation.

The operation of the switch if rotated in a counter clockwise direction is identical with the above but bent up portions 32 and 34 and balls 14 and 16 form the locking means and depressions 28 and 30 the releasing means.

The absence of delicate parts will be noted, the entire operation being performed by one rugged spring. The principal advantage of my switch in its positive action, it being impossible to skip the blades beyond the designated stops due to the fact that the locking balls come into locked position before the blades are released. Furthermore, the positive action of this switch prevents arcing, there I being no possible chance for the blades to stop in any other position than exactly on the center of the fixed blades when completin the circuit.

switch has been designed with a view to employing simple machine operations in the construction of parts thus reducing the cost of m-anlufacture to a minimum.

Although I have shown and described my invention as applied to a rotary switch,.it will be understood that I do not desire to limit myself to this application, as the same may be equally as well employed 1 ith other devices requiring a positive lock in their operation.

' It is understood that the. above des'rip tion and accompanyingdrawings disclose only the preferred embodiment of my invention and that various minor chai'iges in details of construction, proportion, and arrangement of parts be resorted to within the scope of the appended claiins'and without sacrificing any of the advantages of my invention.

Having fully described my invention, what I desire to secure by Letters Patent 1s 1. A locking mechanism for rotary snap switches and the like comprising a rotatable shaft having a plate fixed thereto said plate having a pli'irality' of depressions therein, a stationary member parallel to said plate having a plurality of holes therethirough adapted to register with said depressions, halls in said holes. a plate parallel to said fixed member'and rotatable about said shaft having a plurality of bent up portions adapted to register with the holes of said fixed member, and resilient means energized by the motion of said shaft adapted to rotats said second plate when released by said. balls.

2. A locking" mechanism for rot-ary'snap switches and the like including a fixed plate having spaced holes therethrough, balls in said holeanand two independently movable 'plate'a'one having depressions the other raised portions adapted to engage step-bystep extensions of one or more of said balls beyond the surface of said fixed plate.

3 A locking mechanism for rotary snap switches and the like including a fixed plate, spaced means set therein each movably. extensible beyond either surface of said plate, and two independently movable plates set on opposite sides of said fixed plate each having means to engage step-by-step one or more of the extensions of said extensible means. I 7

4. A locking mechanism for rotary snap switches and the like including a fixed member having diametrically oppositely disposed holes therethrough, laterally and ro tatablv movable balls in said holes, and movable members having. raised portions and depressions coacting' with said balls to limit the motion of said members.

5. A locking mechanism for rotary electrical switches and the like including a plurality of movable. meinbers operable about a shaft and a fixed member, means mo-v ably extensible beyond either surface of said fixed member means carried by the other members cooperating with said extensible means to form a position stop and lock, and resilient means energized by the motion of said shaft for operating one of said members. I

6. locking mechanism for rotary elec tr o-a1 switches and the like including a fixed plate and a plurality of movable plates, a

plurality of balls revoluhly held by said fixed plate and coactin'g with said movable plates to hold same in a desired position. and means interlinking the motion of said movable plates.

7.- A locking mechanism for rotary electrical switches and the like including a shaft, a. plate having depressions attached thereto, a fixed plate, a plate having raised portions independently movable with respect to said shaft, resilient means for imparting motion to said. last plate upon move ment of said shaft, and means for registering said depressions and raised portions.

8.. A locking mechanism for rotary electrical switches and the like including a fixed plate and two rotatably movable plates, means for locking said movable plates in 'ste'p by-step positionsxw'ith respect to said fixed plate and means for-shifting from one position to another comprisinp means to rotate one of said platesxto union]; said mechanism and move saidplate to a succeeding position, and resilient means-en ergize'd by said rotating means to causethe other of said plates to follow up the motion of. said first plate and lock the mechanism in said succeeding position.

9.- A locking mechanism forrotary snap" switches and the like including a fixed-memllll) ber and two rotatably movable members, means for locking said movable members in step-by-step' positions with respect to said fixed member, and means for shifting from one position to another in either sense comprising means to rotate one of said members in either sense to unlock said mechanism and move said member to an adjacent position, and resilient means energized in the same sense by said rotating means to cause the other of said members to follow up the motion of said first member and lock the mechanism in said adjacent position.

10. A locking rotary snap-switch including afixed member and two rotatably movable members, means for locking said movable members in step-by-step positions with respect to said fixed member, means for shifting from one position to another comprising means to rotate one of said members to unlock said members and move said member to a succeeding position and resilient means energized by said rotating means to cause the other of said members to follow up the motion of said first member and lock the members in said succeeding position, and switch blades associated with said second movable member.

11. A two-way locking rotary snap-switch including a fixed member and two rotatably movable members, means for locking said movable members in step-by-step positions with respect to said fixed member, means for shifting from one. position to another in either sense comprising means to rotate one of said members in either sense to unlock said members and move said member to an adjacent position and resilient means energized in the same sense by said rotating means to cause the other of said members to follow up the motion of said first member and lock the members in said adjacent position, and switch blades associated with said second movable member.

12. A locking mechanism for rotary snap switches and the like including a fixed member and two movable members, and means for locking said movable members in stepby-step positions with respect to said fixed member comprising a series of holes through said fixed member, stops in said holes capable of extension beyond either surface of the member, means forming a part of one of said movable members to engage in suc cession one or more of said stops, and means forming a part of the other of said movable members to release said engagement.

13. A locking mechanism for rotary snap switches and the like including a fixed plate iaving a series of holes therethrough, stops extensible beyond either surface of said plate in said holes, two movable plates separated by said fixed plate, and means forma part of said plates adapted to register step-by-step with said series of stops.

14. A. locking mechanism for rotary snap switches and the like including a fixed plate having holes therethrough, stops extensible beyond either surface of said plate in said holes, two movable plates separated by said fixed plate having depressions adapted to register with said stops, one of said plates being cut awa 1 between depressions.

15. A locking mechanism for rotary snap switches and the like including a fixed plate having holes therethrough, stops extensible beyond either surface of said plate in said holes, and two movable plates separated by said fixed plate, one having depressions and the other being rectangular and having raised portions on its edges, said depressions and raised portions being adapted to register with said stops.

16. A locking mechanism for rotary snap switches and the like including a fixed plate having four holes therethrough disposed at the corners of a square, stops extensible beyond either surface of said plate in said holes, and two movable plates separated by said fixed plate, each having four depressions disposed at the corners of a rectangle and adapted to register in pairs with pairs of said stops.

CORRIE F. RUDOLPH. 

